How does it work?:

Micro Processors

How does it work?:

Micro Processors

What are 'Microprocessors'?

Microprocessors are small chips inside all computer systems, and it includes all the functions of a Central Processing Unit (CPU). The microprocessor can be programmed, and work on the binary numeral system, meaning they use numbers for coding, such as 0 and 1. Microprocessors in computers are used for text editing, communication via internet connection and more.

Microprocessors are used in a very wide variety of devices, such as automobiles to industrial control systems.

Microprocessor

Microprocessor size

Microprocessor

Microprocessor size

How do Microprocessors work?

Microprocessors work by using a binary system to run processes from the CPU.

The date is the year that the processor was first introduced. Many processors are re-introduced at higher clock speeds for many years after the original release date.

Transistors is the number of transistors on the chip. You can see that the number of transistors on a single chip has risen steadily over the years.

Microns is the width, in microns, of the smallest wire on the chip. For comparison, a human hair is 100 microns thick. As the feature size on the chip goes down, the number of transistors rises.

Clock speed is the maximum rate that the chip can be clocked at. Clock speed will make more sense in the next section.

Data Width is the width of the ALU. An 8-bit ALU can add/subtract/multiply/etc. two 8-bit numbers, while a 32-bit ALU can manipulate 32-bit numbers. An 8-bit ALU would have to execute four instructions to add two 32-bit numbers, while a 32-bit ALU can do it in one instruction. In many cases, the external data bus is the same width as the ALU, but not always. The 8088 had a 16-bit ALU and an 8-bit bus, while the modern Pentiums fetch data 64 bits at a time for their 32-bit ALUs.

MIPS stands for "millions of instructions per second" and is a rough measure of the performance of a CPU. Modern CPUs can do so many different things that MIPS ratings lose a lot of their meaning, but you can get a general sense of the relative power of the CPUs from this column.

What's a Chip?

A chip is also called an integrated circuit. Generally it is a small, thin piece of silicone onto which the transistors making up the microprocessor have been etched. A chip might be as large as an inch on a side and can contain tens of millions of transistors. Simpler processors might consist of a few thousand transistors etched onto a chip just a few millimeters square.